The first anecdote involving Prince Philip is well-known in Canada. I’ve seen versions where the incident was supposed to have occurred “in a lumber camp in the wilds of northern Ontario” and on “a Royal Visit to Saskatchewan.” The second one is new to me.
Times Colonist [Victoria, BC], 13 April 2021
Letters
A Yukon highlight for the Duke of Edinburgh
I am saddened to learn of the passing of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
May I recount one of the stories of his 1954 visit to “the wilds of colonial Canada.” He is reputed to love to tell this anecdote to visiting Canadian dignitaries over a cocktail.
Philip was scheduled to visit the Yukon during his 1954 visit. At the time, the Royal Canadian Air Force had a small station in Whitehorse. The commanding officer thought he had best put on a mess dinner in honour of the duke’s visit.
The officer’s mess did not have sufficient serving staff, so they recruited several waitresses from the local cafes to work the dinner.
The staff were trained in all the proper etiquette; serve from the right, pick up from the left, only speak when spoken to and then always address him as “Your Highness.”
All went well at the dinner. The wine was poured, toasts were made, dinner served. Having finished his meal, Prince Philip set his knife and fork at the proper 4 o’clock position on the plate.
The waitress bent in from the left to pick up the plate and exclaimed:
“Hold on to your fork Dukie, there’s pie coming!”
Bob Kanngiesser
Port Alberni
Prince Philip knew what had to be done
My parents were good friends with Gar and Lorna Dixon, who ran Government House for many years.
They met all the royals. Here is a quick story about Prince Philip:
“They” were staying at Government House.
After dinner there was a slide show about something that went on perhaps a bit too long.
After a few too many slides, Commander Gar decided to sneak out for a breather. He realized he might be seen, so he crawled on his hands and knees in the darkness and nearly knocked heads with the Duke, doing the same thing.
Rick Stevens
Victoria